


My Dreams Aren’t As Empty (As My Conscience Seems to Be)

by Politzania



Series: Behind Blue Eyes [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Double Agents, M/M, Pining, Winter Soldier POV, Young Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:20:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28153755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Politzania/pseuds/Politzania
Summary: By revealing the technology of his prosthetic arm, the Soldier continues his mission to interest Tony Stark in the potential of partnering with his Hydra superiors.  However, it seems that’s not the only partnership either of them are interested in.Bucky Barnes Bingo: Keeping Secrets
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Series: Behind Blue Eyes [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2062545
Comments: 2
Kudos: 59
Collections: Bucky Barnes Bingo 2020





	My Dreams Aren’t As Empty (As My Conscience Seems to Be)

**Author's Note:**

> Title: My Dreams Aren’t As Empty (As My Conscience Seems to Be)  
> Collaborator(s): PoliZ  
> Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28153755  
> Square Filled: U2 - Keeping Secrets. (Replacing Soulmates thanks to October party token)  
> Ship/Main Pairing: WinterIron  
> Rating: Mature  
> Major Tags/Triggers/Warnings: Canon divergence, young!Tony, Winter Soldier!Bucky, lying, tech geekery,  
> Summary: By revealing the technology of his prosthetic arm, Jacob continues his mission to interest Tony Stark in the potential of partnering with his superiors. However, it seems that’s not all Tony (or Jacob are interested in.  
> Word Count: 1431

“Oh no, Jake, you’re not going to the club dressed like that!” Tony exclaimed, throwing his hands up in frustration. There was something eerily familiar to Jacob about the nickname Tony had given him just a few days into their acquaintance. He liked the way it sounded coming from the brilliant, handsome young man who was the Soldier’s target. 

At times, it was a struggle to remember that this was simply a mission, and Jacob wasn’t even his name. His assignment was to act as Tony’s bodyguard and win his friendship; therefore providing leverage towards his objective: to deliver the heir to Stark Industries — a genius in his own right — into the hands of his superiors.

A small part of him rebelled, but he knew he had no choice. Hydra wanted what Tony Stark could create; and if they had to take it from him by force, they would. Jacob had to convince Tony to cooperate and save him from the potential recalibration, a pain he himself knew only too well. 

Tony snapped his fingers in front of Jacob’s face, rousing him from his grim reverie. “Hello, McFly.” Looking Jacob up and down, Tony shook his head with mock-disgust. ”Work with me, sunshine. You’re gonna stand out like a sore thumb!” 

Jacob had thought the same of Tony when he walked in the room; with his tight shiny leather pants and see-through tank top. His hair stuck up stiffly from his head and his eyes were rimmed in black. Jacob didn’t understand the current fashion, but some part of him acknowledged just how attractive his companion looked in it. 

“Sorry, Tony. This is pretty much all I got.” Jacob’s wardrobe was limited to what he’d been provided for his assignment. He had vague memories of wearing ‘something nice’ for an evening out, and what he had on fit that idea much better than Tony’s getup. 

“Let’s at least lose the jacket and roll up your shirt sleeves. Maybe unbutton the collar and show a bit of chest,” Tony coaxed, stepping forward and reaching for Jacob’s left wrist. 

Jacob had successfully hidden his prosthetic arm from Tony up to this point; the silicone glove providing a realistic appearance to a casual gaze. But his superiors had clearly underestimated the extent to which his and Tony’s lives would become intertwined. It was probably only a matter of time before Tony discovered the truth, but Jacob found himself snatching his hand away anyways. “Uh, I’d rather not.” 

Tony’s eyebrows wrinkled in confusion? “Why? Do you have embarrassing tattoos or something? Or gnarly scars? I’ve already figured out you’ve got to be ex-military--” 

“Uh, my arm, it’s fake,” Jacob blurted out to distract Tony from that line of thought. 

“Really!?” Tony’s deep brown eyes lit up with interest. “No way! It looks and reacts like it’s completely normal! I had no idea - I gotta see this!” He eagerly reached out again, and Jacob stepped back instinctively, as if being attacked. 

Tony stopped himself, a guilty look crossing his face. “I’m sorry. That was incredibly rude, wasn’t it? I just... get kinda carried away when it comes to tech stuff.” 

The tactical part of Jacob’s mind realized he could turn the situation to the advantage of his mission. If he showed Tony his arm, perhaps he’d be interested in learning more about the organization who was capable of such a feat of engineering. As for that increasingly insistent part that found Tony attractive in ways that another man shouldn’t, well, it relished being the object of his companion’s attention. 

“Okay. You can take a look.” He rolled up his sleeve and peeled off the glove, revealing the shining metal plates underneath.

“Holy shit, that’s ... what, some sort of titanium alloy? Where’d it come from? Who made it?” 

Tony quickly set aside their plans to go out; instead sitting down and listening intently as Jacob started telling a carefully edited version of how he’d gotten his arm. He had been warned not to mention Zola or Hydra, as the elder Stark may have poisoned his son against them; so Jacob only referred to a ‘benefactor’.

He focused on the technology aspects of his prosthetic, thinking that was sure to catch his companion’s interest, but Tony seemed to want to know more about Jacob himself. “So, I’m guessing you lost your arm in an accident?” he asked, voice full of concern. 

They’d told him he’d been skiing and had a bad fall, and between a severe injury and frostbite, they’d had to amputate, but that didn’t seem quite right. Jacob vividly recalled falling, snow and being so very cold, but there was more: a train, gunfight, a shield... 

“Yes, but I ... I don’t remember much.” 

“That’s probably just as well,” Tony replied with a sympathetic pat to his shoulder, his head tilting curiously as his hand touched metal. 

“Yeah, it goes that far up.” Jacob took off his shirt, intending to shift focus back on the arm instead of himself. 

“Oh,”Tony breathed, eyes growing wide. At first, Jacob thought he was staring at the arm and his scars, but there was an unexpected glint of something more in Tony’s eyes; Jacob found himself growing hot under his companion’s gaze. 

Tony shook his head and stepped back. “Sorry, didn’t mean to stare. It’s just that ... wow. And then that prosthetic -- it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen. Can you tell me more about that benefactor you mentioned? I’m sure Obie and SI would love to get in on this kind of tech.” 

Jacob thought fast. “They’re not ready to go public quite yet. But they are looking to recruit people to their cause. People like you, Tony, brilliant minds who can help them save the world from itself.” Jacob found himself parroting one of Zola’s pet phrases. 

Tony snorted. “Sounds like they’d get along with Obie better. ‘Tony, my boy’,” he said in a passable imitation of Stane, “ ‘the world is going to hell in a hand basket, and it’s our job to pull it back from the abyss.’ Of course he thinks that means making bigger and better weapons. As if that wasn’t what got us into the whole Cold War thing to begin with.” 

“They’re not just interested in weapons,” Jacob replied; which wasn’t quite a lie. “For example, that robot of yours —“ 

“He’s not just a robot,” Tony interrupted. “Dum-E’s cutting-edge learning algorithms give him a high degree of autonomous control, and I’m working on voice commands.”

“Exactly! He’s like something out of the science fiction pulps I used to read!” As Jacob answered, a memory surfaced: bringing magazines to a sick friend, a scrawny blond kid who was nonetheless the bravest person he’d known. 

“ ‘Pulps’, huh? That’s what my dad called them,” Tony commented somberly, and a wave of guilt washed over Jacob once again. 

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, gently squeezing Tony’s shoulder. 

“Thanks.” Tony blinked and took a deep breath, then patted Jacob’s hand. “How about we shoot for going out next weekend? That gives us time to figure out a good look for you. In the meanwhile, I’m calling it a night.” He waggled his eyebrows and purred, “ Wanna come tuck me in?” 

“See you in the morning, Tony.” Jacob answered evenly, trying desperately not to think of what might happen if he actually said ‘yes’. He pulled the silicone glove back on as Tony left the room. 

They were dancing. Not to the music that Tony listened to, but something slow, a tune that Jacob almost remembered. His left hand — somehow flesh again -- rested lightly on his partner’s waist, while he laced the fingers of his right hand between Tony’s. In turn, Tony placed his free hand high on Jacob’s shoulder, those clever fingers toying idly with the back of Jacob’s neck. A husky woman’s voice crooned about moonlight and love as they moved slowly around the dance floor. 

Tony’s eyes were wide and bright as he looked up at Jacob. “So, when are you going to kiss me?”

“Thought you’d never ask, doll.” Tony’s lips were as plush as they looked and tasted of coffee. He yielded sweetly to Jacob’s questing tongue as he wove his fingers into Jacob’s hair. And then they were in bed together, both naked as the day they were born, bodies entwined. Tony gasped and moaned as Jacob pleasured him in every way he knew how, his own arousal rising to a peak. 

Jacob startled awake, hard and wanting with the name Tony had cried out as he came still echoing in his ears: Bucky.


End file.
